Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an application cooperation system and an application cooperation method. More particularly, the present invention relates to an application cooperation system which includes a server and an image processing apparatus having an application program installed therein which performs processing in cooperation with the server, and an application cooperation method performed by the application cooperation system.
Description of the Related Art
When there is processing that cannot be performed by a multi-function peripheral (hereinafter, referred to as an “MFP”), that processing can be performed using a service, such as “software as service (SaaS)”, provided by a server. In this case, a server client system having a server serving as a Web server and an MFP serving as a client is generally used, and the data that has been processed in the Web server is received by the MFP for output.
In a conventional server client system, however, the operation screen displayed on an MFP for a user to operate the MFP is the one generated by and received from a server. Therefore, in the state where the operation screen received from the server is being displayed in the MFP, the user cannot instruct the MFP to perform image processing on the data that has been scanned in the MFP. In order to cause the MFP to perform image processing on the data scanned in the MFP, it is necessary to display an operation screen that has been prepared in advance in the MFP. This produces the need to switch the screen between the operation screen received from the server and the operation screen prepared in the MFP.
Further, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2005-167988 discloses an image processing system that is made up of an MFP connected to the Internet and one or more service providers which provide predetermined processing services. In this system, a controller in the MFP obtains from the service providers the processing function information about the services available from the providers, and the controller causes an operation portion in the MFP to display, in an alternative manner, a first processing function based on the processing function information acquired, and a second processing function executable by the MFP. With the conventional image processing system, while the system may be able to perform either the first processing function based on the processing function information about the services available from the service providers or the second processing function executable by the MFP, it is not possible for a user to designate the first processing function and the second processing function using a single operation screen.